The Friday Cyclotouriste

The view from the the top of the secret (or not-so-secret) bike path connecting San Rafael to San Anselmo that I mentioned here. From the San Rafael side, the path connects with Fawn Drive in San Anselmo.

I’m returning from the farmer’s market and the ebisu’s rear rack is filled with leeks, carrots, and onions; the front bag with eggs, a head of cabbage, a turnip, and a shallot.

Oh yeah, congratulations to the Super Bowl champions — the New Orleans Saints!

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Since a trip to Seattle last fall, folding bikes have been on my radar. I made a silent vow that my next bike, whenever it comes, will fold-up for bus and ferry connections and general urban mobility.

This video got me excited about the Brompton:

Then I heard great things about the Bike Friday Tikit. And now, the latest bike on my radar is the Dahon Mu Uno. It’s The Old Man and the Sea of folding bicycles — a minimalist masterpiece.  No gears. No cables. Back-pedal brakes.

I first read about it on design guru, Rob Forbes’ site, Studio Forbes. Here’s how to fold it:

The image on the left (click the thumbnail to embiggen) received an honorable mention last December in Ecovelo’s ‘end of summer’ photo contest. As a prize, I was sent a rather flamboyant wind breaker that I’m slowly gaining appreciation for, especially the heraldry — sable, a griffin rampant — on the sleeve. Thanks Ecovelo!

All the posts from that long day trip down the coast to Santa Cruz are compiled here (or by selecting the destination from the category drop down menu in the right margin).

Last week, instead of biking I went for a rainy day hike up the Cataract Trail to Laurel Dell. Lots of mushrooms, but not a Chanterelle to be found

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Persimmon bread and — for a change — some tea!

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If you’re cycling up to Mt. Tam or over the ridge and you want to get off, stretch your legs, and hike, this is a nice side trip. The trail follows a steep canyon with waterfalls, all the way up to Laurel Dell and beyond (potentially to the summit of Mt. Tam).

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Let’s pack up and take off and dig Laurel Dell camp. Then we’ll hike over the trails down to the sea and swim.

That’s Japhy Ryder from the Jack Kerouac novel, Dharma Bums. Kerouac based the Japhy character on my personal hero, poet Gary Snyder. Kerouac’s narrator continues:

We arrived at Laurel Dell camp at about ten, it was also supplied with stone fireplaces with grates, and picnic table, but the surroundings were infinitely more beautiful than Portrero Meadows. Here were the real meadows: dreamy beuaties with soft grass sloping all around, fringed by heavy deep green timber, the whole scene of waving grass and brooks and nothing in sight.

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Changing a freewheel is about a 2-3 minute job — if you have the correct tool!

To mount the Suntour 13-28t I needed a special Suntour four-prong extractor. So I rode down to The Bicycle Works and found one in their tool collection.

They’re located at Yolanda Station along the east-west bike route in San Anselmo. If you’re not yet a member consider joining.

From The Bicycle Works website:

The Bicycle Works is Marin’s non-profit do-it-yourself community bicycle tool workshop empowering our community with knowledge, skills, tools, and materials for bicycle related activity with open workshops, classes and a space for creative collaboration. Directors Jelani Bertoni and Spokey Godfrey, have launched this hub of community in San Anselmo to inspire the people and the planet to live more active, sustainable lives.

That’s Jelani, in the background of the above picture. He showed me the neat trick of securing the extractor in the bench vice and then turning the wheel with downward pressure to unscrew it (normally, I would brace the wheel on the ground and turn the extractor with a long wrench — a much worse way to go about it).

Thanks Jelani!

I once avoided anything having to do with gear ratios as the subject would make my eyes glaze over, but they’re obviously really important. The late Sheldon Brown — expert on everything bicycle related — created a simple and useful gear calculator which helped reduce my fear of the arcane subject.

My Guerciotti originally had a rear cluster of cogs ranging from 13-23 teeth, as seen on the freewheel on the right, which is a good set-up for racing on mostly flat or rolling terrain.

But here’s the problem: this gear range — coupled with 42t and 52t chain rings in front — is horribly suited for Marin County’s mountainous terrain (remember: the more teeth, the bigger the cog, and the easier it is to pedal. For the front chain rings — the opposite is true).

The solution: ditch this set-up and replace it with a cluster with a 25t as the largest cog. This worked much better, but I still yearned to spin an easier gear up Bolinas ridge and other tough climbs. I discovered that some 6-speed freewheels were made with a 28t cog, which seemed just perfect and wouldn’t require a special long-cage rear derailer (necessary for rear cogs above 28t).

A Suntour freewheel with a 28t cog is pictured on the left.

I can’t wait to install it!

Technical Note: According to Sheldon’s calculator, with the new Suntour freewheel my drive wheel has an equivalent diameter of 40.1 inches (i.e. gear inches) compared to 48.9 inches using the original 23t freewheel, resulting in about a 20% improvement. Still, the low gear of a typical mountain or touring bike is another 5o% or so lower, at around  20-25 gear inches.

In between rain showers I went for a little ride around downtown Fairfax today. I spied this cruiser, parked under an awning to keep it dry, I guess. Not even a lock! It’s all good.

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It’s cold and rainy and not much bike riding going on, but I’m thrilled with a newly discovered bread making method guaranteed to produce the finest, rustic loaf you can imagine — perfectly developed crumb structure on the inside and a light outside crust — with very little effort and no special ingredients required.

Below is my first attempt. I’m amazed! See how simple it is here (the recipe link is half-way down the page in the left column).

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Most people riding out to West Marin keep on Sir Francis Drake Blvd. staying focused on prizes like Pt. Reyes Station or Chileno Valley Rd.

However, if you’re not in a hurry the short detour (see geotag link under image) down San Geronimo Valley Drive offers less cars and more shade on those hot summer days.

Plus, this takes you past the Woodacre market (that serves up a typical thin espresso in an oversized cup. But hey, you can’t be too picky about your coffee when you’re in the hinterlands!).

Mini-Review: This is Wald’s model 114 basket attached to my Nishiki. There is no fork or brake bolt hardware to deal with; it stays attached with curved pressure points resting below the headset and with hooks around the handlebars. So for around $20 and two minutes of work you’ve got a basket (granted it’s not particularly elegant or permanent). Still, I’ve severely overloaded mine and it performed really well.

A standard grocery sack will almost fit, but not quite (If that matters the model 133 may be the better choice) so it’s not good for big hauls — a six-pack, a carton of eggs and some bread, that sort of thing works best. The other day it was overflowing with veggies — leeks, cauliflower, broccoli, carrots, cabbage, some shallots — for making a blended Portugese-style soup. This photo was made after a morning breakfast run.

A lift-up handle releases the basket from the its mount so you can carry it into the store or around the market.

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This image was buried in my cleaning house 2009 posting. On second viewing, it deserves full-size treatment. A few others from that gallery will probably show up full size as well, if they deserve it.

I’ve bought and sold a few bikes, a pick-up truck, camera equipment and all kinds of other stuff on Craigslist.

There was often a faint fragrance of humor in many of these transactions, but it took the mad-genius behind this video to fully reveal the sweet perfume of an unconsumated Craigslist sale.

Warning: the video may not be appropriate for viewing at work, due to minor bits of colorful language.

Original video and credits can be found here.

The Friday Cyclotouriste wishes everyone a happy New Year’s Day, 2010.  As you spread the joy and benefits of riding bicycles this year may you suffer few flats, encounter many interesting people, consume delicious food and drink, and experience only tailwinds during all your rides!

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For whatever reason, certain images never got posted during 2009. So this is some year-end housekeeping.

This shot is from the crest of the hill on Sir Francis Drake Blvd. just before descending into the town of Olema.

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Here’s a few more. Click to make big.

Pacific Ocean, Christmas Day 2009

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Hmmm, what’s with this big van at the end of my alleyway? Something bicycle related it seems.

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See the little one peaking out of the trailer? (Good thing she’s wearing a helmet!)

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Ah yes, it’s the local bicycle, brat and beer garden!  Gestalt Haus 28 Bolinas Rd. on a rainy Sunday afternoon.

Nishiki Sport Mixte

The Nishiki is great city bike. The upright position is so comfortable (the height of the handlebars really contributes to this) that I ride it instead of my Guerciotti or Ebisu on errands around town.

I use it for trips to the Post Office, the Coffee Roastery, the Good Earth, the Scoop, Gestalt Haus, Fat Angel, and (especially) the hardware store. I’ve carried four cans of paint (two one-gallon cans and two one-quart cans) by using the front basket and then hanging one of the gallon cans around the handlebar grip.  I’ve also carried 10 eight-foot strips of redwood lathe.

What I’ve added: a front basket, a kickstand, a bell, new tires, an extra long seat post (so I could get the seat up high enough to make the smallish frame fit better), and a halogen flashlight that I wedge in the basket for night riding.

What I’d like to add in the future: fenders, a bigger basket, mounted head and taillights, maybe an internal gear hub, and ultimately a full conversion to the 650B wheel size so I can use wider tires.

J'adore Mixtes

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Here’s my Nishiki mixte making its first appearance on the blog (with my Macbook in the front basket outside the Fairfax Coffee Roastery).

People sometimes tease me for riding a girl’s bike, but I could care less if it’s a girl’s bike.

This is not just a case of a well developed Jungian anima at work. The step-through frame is downright practical for city riding and for things like getting on and off at red lights. But, I cannot dispute that mixtes are especially well suited for the fairer sex. Want proof? Cycle Chic from Copenhagen.

Need more proof?

Then I advise you to visit this mixte riding, coffee drinking, picture taking hipstress at Bikes and The City (and yes, I think I found my soulmate. )

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